4G Americas will now be known as 5G Americas. The industry association, which has been involved in the development of 5G for the past two years, said it was time to update its name to better signify what the group is about. Chris Pearson, president of 5G Americas, said that the group will continue to recommend standards for 5G as well as for LTE, LTE-Advanced and LTE-Advanced Pro.
According to 5G Americas Chairman Tom Keathley, who is also the SVP for wireless network architecture and design at AT&T, the time is right for the group to become a key proponent for 5G because wireless operators in the Americas are starting to focus on the next-generation of wireless networks. "As the work to make 5G a reality ramps, it's a fitting time for 4G Americas to accept the mantle of 5G Americas," Keathley said in a statement.
5G Americas President Chris Pearson echoed Keathley's remarks, noting that the group's goal is to be the "voice of LTE and 5G" for the Americas. He said the group will make sure that carriers in the Americas have input on standards and technical requirements for 5G and support the 3GPP technology path as it evolves to 5G.
The association recently announced plans to represent the Americas region in the first Global 5G event to be developed by the 5GMF, the 5G Forum, IMT-2020 Promotion Group and the 5GPPP in Beijing, China, May 31-June 1.
This isn't the first time 5G Americas has changed its name. The association was called 3G Americas for its championing of the 3GPP family of technologies, and in 2010 it changed its name to 4G Americas and broadened its mission to include being an advocate for 3GPP mobile broadband technologies, applications and services and connected devices. The group was originally formed in 2002 to support the 3GPP technology path and address standards recommendations and technical requirements for the GSM air interface technology.
For more:
- see this press release
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